20GHz chips on the way?

Processors running at 20GHz could be commercially available as soon as 2008.

Tantalum oxide chip gates, extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, new microarchitecture and better insulation are some of the

developing technologies that could yield major leaps in processing power, Intel researchers said this week.

Nathan Brookwood, principal analyst at Insight 64, said chip speeds have increased by 50 percent annually, so that 4GHz chips should be a reality by 2003, with 20GHz becoming feasible by 2008.

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